LaTourette: Tea Party Would Not Have Backed Reagan

Ohio Republican Rep. Steve LaTourette, who had harsh words for the right wing of his party earlier in the week, stuck to his criticism on Friday, saying former president Ronald Reagan would not have earned tea party support.

“Ronald Reagan would not be backed by the tea party today,” LaTourette said on CNN's Starting Point. “Ronald Reagan, when he was shot at the Washington Hilton, was giving a speech about how he favored prevailing wages for union workers.”

A day after saying his party should stay out of Americans’ bedrooms, LaTourette echoed his call for a more moderate Republican Party. “Republicans don't control the United States Senate today in the last two election cycles because these candidates have not been center right. They've been right-right,” he said.

LaTourette also again singled out the failed Senate candidacies of Richard Mourdock and Todd Akin, whose remarks on rape stirred national controversy, as damaging to the Republican Party.